What is the Clery Act?
As part of the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, otherwise known as the Clery Act, certain categories of crime, arrest, and referrals at certain locations are required to be reported in an Annual Security Report that is published by October 1st each year and is made available to the campus community. The Annual Security Reports are available on the Campus Safety website at https://www.goshen.edu/safety/
Another key requirement of the Clery Act is to issue campus alerts to the campus community on crimes considered to be a threat to students and employees that are reported to Campus Security Authorities (CSAs), Campus Safety, or local law enforcement agencies.
The overall intent of the Clery Act is to encourage the reporting and collection of accurate campus crime data and to promote crime awareness and enhance campus safety.
What Is a Campus Security Authority (CSA)?
The Clery Act identifies certain categories of students, College employees, and contractors as Campus Security Authorities (CSAs) who have federally mandated responsibilities to report Clery Act crimes that are reported to them. Some examples would be staff in the Dean of Students office, Staff advisors to student organizations, and coaches in Athletics, to name a few. A single teaching faculty member is unlikely to have significant responsibility for student and campus activities, so they are not normally CSA’s unless they are involved with additional duties. Clerical staff, as well, are unlikely to have significant responsibility for student and campus activities.
The intent of including non‐law enforcement personnel in the role of CSA is to acknowledge that some community members and students, in particular, may be hesitant about reporting a crime to the police but may be more inclined to report incidents to other campus‐affiliated individuals.
CSA Crime Reporting Obligation
Campus Security Authorities (CSAs) are responsible for reporting allegations of Clery Act crimes. CSAs must also report any Clery Act crimes reported to them or that they witness. However, CSAs are not required to report crimes that they learn of indirectly (e.g., overhear; through in‐class discussion; mentioned during a speech, workshop, or group presentation). CSA crime reporting is not a substitute for, nor does it supersede, any existing internal Departmental or other University reporting methods or protocols already in place for reporting incidents.
A Clery Act crime is considered “reported” when it is brought to the attention of a CSA, Campus Safety, or local law enforcement personnel by a victim, witness, other third party or even the offender. The crime reporting party need not be College affiliated.
While CSAs are only obligated to report Clery Act crimes that occurred within the College’s Clery Geography, CSAs are encouraged to promptly report all campus‐ related criminal incidents, and other public safety‐related emergencies to Campus Safety and/or the Goshen Police Department. Reporting all incidents of crime is important, because sometimes it may not be clear as to whether the incident occurred within the Clery Geography.
The offenses (Clery Crimes) for which we are required to disclose statistics are:
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Murder & Non-Negligent Manslaughter: The willful (non-negligent) killing of a human being by another. Note: Deaths caused by negligence, attempts to kill, assaults to kill, suicides, accidental deaths, and justifiable homicides are excluded.
Manslaughter by Negligence: the killing of another person through gross negligence. Gross negligence is the intentional failure to perform a manifest duty in reckless disregard of the consequences as affecting the life or property of another.
Sex Offenses: Any sexual act directed against another person, without the consent of the victim, including instances where the victim is incapable of giving consent.
- Rape: The penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.
- Fondling: The touching of the private body parts of another person for the purpose of sexual gratification, without the consent of the victim, including instances where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of his/her age or because of his/her temporary or permanent mental incapacity.
- Incest: Non-forcible sexual intercourse between persons who are related to each other within the degrees wherein marriage is prohibited by law.
- Statutory Rape: Non-forcible sexual intercourse with a person who is under the statutory age of consent.
Robbery: The taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person by force or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear. The taking of personal property in the possession of another, from his/her immediate presence, and against his/her will, accomplished by means of force or fear. (Includes attempts)
Aggravated Assault: An unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. This type of assault usually is accompanied by the use of a weapon or by means likely to produce death or great bodily harm. It is not necessary that injury result from an aggravated assault when a gun, knife or other weapon is used which could or probably would result in a serious potential injury if the crime were successfully completed. An unlawful assault upon the person of another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. (Includes attempts, and whether or not an injury occurred.)
Burglary: The unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or a theft. For reporting purposes this definition includes: unlawful entry with intent to commit a larceny or a felony; breaking and entering with intent to commit a larceny; housebreaking; safecracking; and all attempts to commit any of the aforementioned.
Motor Vehicle Theft: the theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle. (Classify as motor vehicle theft all cases where automobiles are taken by persons not having lawful access, even though the vehicles are later abandoned – including joy riding).
Arson: Any willful or malicious burning or attempt to burn, with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling, house, public building, motor vehicle or aircraft, personal property of another, etc.
Dating Violence: Violence committed by a person who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim; (1) The existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on the reporting party’s statement and with consideration of the length of the relationship, the type of relationship, and the frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship. (2) For the purpose of this definition – (i) Dating violence includes, but is not
limited to, sexual or physical abuse or the threat of such abuse; (ii) Dating violence does not include acts covered under the definition of domestic violence. The term ‘‘dating violence’’ means violence committed by a person –
(A) Who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim; and
(B) Where the existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on a consideration of the following factors:(i) The length of the relationship.
(ii) The type of relationship.
(iii) The frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship.Domestic Violence: (1) A felony or misdemeanor crime of violence committed – (i) By a current or former spouse or intimate partner of the victim; (ii) By a person with whom the victim shares a child in common; (iii) By a person who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse or intimate partner; (iv) By a person similarly situated to a spouse or the victim under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction in which the crime of violence occurred, or (v) By any other person against an adult or youth victim who is protected from that person’s acts under the domestic or family violence laws or the jurisdiction in which the crime of violence occurred.
Stalking: (1) Engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to – (i) Fear for the person’s safety or the safety of others; or (ii) Suffer substantial emotional distress. (2) For the purpose of this definition – (i) Course of conduct means two or more acts, including, but not limited to, acts in which the stalker directly, indirectly, or through third parties, by any action, method, device, or means follows, monitors, observes, surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about, a person, or interferes with a person’s property. (ii) Substantial emotional distress means significant mental suffering or anguish that may, but does not necessarily, require medical or other professional treatment or counseling. (iii) Reasonable person means a reasonable person under similar circumstances and with similar identities to the victim.
Clery Act Reportable Arrests and Referrals (Section 2)
Drug/Narcotic Violations: Violations of state and local laws relating to the unlawful possession, sale, use, growing, manufacturing, and making of narcotic drugs. The relevant substances include: opium or cocaine and their derivatives (morphine, heroin, codeine); marijuana; synthetic narcotics (Demerol, methadone); and dangerous non-narcotic drugs (barbiturates, Benzedrine). Drug/narcotic violations referred for campus disciplinary action under the Campus Code need not be reported to the Police Department).
Alcohol Violations: are defined as the violation of state or local laws or ordinances prohibiting the manufacture, sale, purchase, transportation, possession or use of alcoholic beverages, not including driving under the influence and drunkenness.
Weapons Violation: is defined as the violation of laws or ordinances prohibiting the manufacture, sale, purchase, transportation, possession, concealment, or use of firearms, cutting instruments, explosives, incendiary devices or other deadly weapons. This classification encompasses weapons offenses that are regulatory in nature.
Clery Act Reportable Hate Crimes (Section 3)Hate Crimes: A crime involving one or more of the above listed crimes (in Section 1), the crimes of theft, simple assault, intimidation and/or vandalism (see below) reported to local police agencies or to a campus security authority that manifests evidence that the victim was intentionally selected because of the perpetrator’s bias against the victim. The categories of bias include the victim’s actual or perceived race, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, national origin, and disability.
• Larceny-Theft (Except Motor Vehicle Theft): The unlawful taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession or constructive possession of another. Attempted larcenies are included. Embezzlement, confidence games, forgery, worthless checks, etc., are excluded.
• Simple Assault: An unlawful physical attack by one person upon another where neither the offender displays a weapon, nor the victim suffers obvious severe or aggravated bodily injury involving apparent broken bones, loss of teeth, possible internal injury, severe laceration, or loss of consciousness.
• Intimidation: To unlawfully place another person in reasonable fear of bodily harm through the use of threatening words and/or other conduct, but without displaying a weapon or subjecting the victim to actual physical attack.
• Destruction/Damage/Vandalism of Property: To willfully or maliciously destroy, damage, deface, or otherwise injure real of personal property without the consent of the owner or the person having custody or control of it.
Clery Act Geography (Reportable Crime Occurrence Locations)
Clery Act Geography: To qualify as reportable, a Clery Act crime must have occurred in one of the following locations:
- On-campus property: Any building or property owned or controlled by the University within the same reasonable contiguous geographic area and used by the University in direct support of, or in a manner related to, the University’s educational purpose, including buildings or property the location described herein that is owned by the University but controlled by another person and which is frequently used by students (excluding residential life buildings and Greek houses)
- On-campus residential life buildings and Greek houses.
- Non-campus property: Any non-campus property or building owned or controlled (leased) by the University that is frequently used by students and is not within the same reasonable contiguous geographic area of the institution.
- Public Property: Any public property located immediately adjacent to and accessible from campus including public garages, thoroughfares, sidewalks, streets, lands, and parks.
How a CSA Responds When a Crime Is Reported
- When a crime is reported, the CSA should always first handle emergencies and call 911.
- If it is not an emergency, the CSA should ask the individual reporting the crime if they would like to report the incident to Campus Safety. If they do, then the CSA should coordinate reporting and contact Campus Safety via phone at 574-535-7292 or in person at Wyse Hall 121 during business hours.
- All College employees (including student employees), as well as non‐employees with teaching or supervisory authority, are obligated to promptly report sexual misconduct of which they become aware to the Title IX Office or Deputy Title IX Coordinator unless they have a recognized confidentiality privilege. Sexual violence resource information for students, faculty, and staff is also available at https://www.goshen.edu/sexual-assault/
- The CSA should explain that they are a federally mandated crime reporter and are required to submit a crime report for statistical purposes and that the crime report can be submitted without identifying the crime reporting party and/or victim if the reporting party would like to remain anonymous.
- It is very important that CSAs report crime on a timely basis to Campus Safety, because a reported crime may warrant a College issued a timely warning to the campus community. All crimes reported from CSAs should be reported here: https://goo.gl/forms/uuQAZRE8hobWjB3W2
CSA Crime Documentation – CSA Crime Report Form
It is important for CSAs to document on the CSA Crime Report Form (linked at the top of this page) sufficient incident detail to allow Campus Safety to properly classify the crime type. CSAs should not investigate a crime reported to them or attempt to determine whether, in fact, a crime took place. CSAs should simply report the crime on a timely basis to Campus Safety.
Clery Act and CSA Additional Information & Questions
We want to take a moment to extend our sincere appreciation and thanks for all you do to ensure the safety and well-being of our entire community. We know our collaboration and open communication throughout the year lead to many joint successes resulting in a safer and more inclusive campus. You play a role in ensuring the safety and security of our campus community. We are grateful for the time you take to assist Campus Safety in reporting crimes. We know it is never easy to experience or witness a crime or receive information about others being victims of crime—so thank you for helping us not only comply with this federal law, but to also ensure we are all doing everything we can to respond to and prevent future crime on our campus. Thank you for your attention to this important work. If you have questions on the Clery Act, the role and responsibilities of a CSA, contact Campus Safety at safety@goshen.edu or by phone during business hours at 574-535-7599.